Ford Motor Company (F)

22146ER (81.83) Submitted: 4/27/07 8:50 PM : Start Price: $8.05 F Score: -35.97

A gut feel here. The stock has been so hammered (and deservedly so). The financials are terrible. The cars are uninspired. But the man in charge, Alan Mulally, has a few things that I like:

1. At Boeing, he was integral to the development of the fuel-efficient dreamliner that turned around that company's fortunes -- creating sales for Boeing and stealing same from Airbus. While car companies tend to improve incrementally, radical improvements in fuel efficiency are possible with the development of cars from carbon-fiber composite -- stronger than steel & much lighter. In addition the dreamliner is a great customer experience. It could be years before such a car is in your showroom, but it's nice that an American car company seems to know where it's going. Makes it far easier to cut out the stuff that doesn't fit the model.

2. He spent time in the showrooms selling cars. Maybe it was for internal PR, but there's no chance he didn't learn something about the priorities of dealers. I like that.

3. He got paid $39 million over his first four months on the job. So he knows how to make money. ;-)

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